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Paint Crafts | Seasonal
ByErin Nutter Updated on
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Do you love decorating for Fall, but don’t always want everything to be orange? This fun painted faux pumpkin craft can be done in less than 20 minutes (minus dry time) and costs under $5!
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I grabbed these faux pumpkins at the end of the season for really cheap. I knew they would make the perfect Fall decoration. Come along and learn how to water marble using your leftover spray paint.
How Do You Create A Marble Effect With Spray Paint
Because most spray paints are oil-based they can create a fun effect in the water. Think about how salad dressing creates the effect in your bottle. Essentially you are hydro dipping by floating the spray paint on top of the water before dipping.
We have used the same technique to create amazing marble terracotta pots.
Recommended Supplies
- Faux Pumpkins-sometimes you can find small pumpkins at the Dollar Store. These were bought at Michael’s after the season last year for under $1. We love 70% off sales!
- White Spray Paint With Primer– We use a glossy finish to give a fun almost ceramic look.
- 2 Additional Colors of Spray Paint– We used gold spray paint and black.
- Wooden Skewer
- Old Plastic Bin or Bucket
DIY Painted Pumpkins Instructions
Before You Begin
Set up your paint station and make sure your pumpkins are dust-free.
Step 1: Spray Faux Pumpkins White
Use large sweeping motions to cover pumpkins with white gloss spray paint. Let spray paint fully dry.
Step 2: Fill Water Container and Gather Spray Paints
Your container only needs a little bigger than your pumpkins. We used a Dollar Store container. You will probably ruin the container so don’t use one you love.
Step 3: Add Spray Paint To Water
You will need to do this very quickly. We sprayed gold and then black spray paint.
Step 4: Swirl Paint Around
Use a skewer to swirl the paint around. You don’t really need to mix it too much.
Step 5: Dip Pumpkin In Water
You will see how the paint attaches to the pumpkin when you dip it. You can twist the pumpkin before pulling it out.
Step 6: Pull Pumpkin Out
You can dip the whole pumpkin or just half of one like in this picture.
Note: You may want to wear gloves if you don’t want your hands to be covered in spray paint.
Step 7: Prop Up To Dry
If you dip the whole pumpkin this is a little difficult. For the ones that were completely dipped, we used old styrofoam to stick the stems in.
How To Display
Use a dollar store basket to display your pumpkin craft.
Finished Painted Pumpkins
The best part about these gold, white and black marbled pumpkins is that you can keep them out past Halloween. We may even use them as place cardholders at Thanksgiving.
Related Spray Paint Projects
- 25 Easy Spray Paint DIY Projects
- How To Spray Paint Cabinet Hardware
- How To Remove Spray Paint From Glass
- DIY Paint Pour Pumpkins (could work on real or fake ones)
Follow us on Pinterest, Youtube or Facebook for more DIY inspiration!
Craft FAQs
How can I tell if my spray paint is oil-based?
Look at the clean-up instructions. If it says it needs to be cleaned up with mineral spirits or paint thinner then you have oil-based paint.
If the clean-up instructions say to clean with soap and water then you have water-based paint.
Can you do this on real mini pumpkins?
I would think if you spray or paint your pumpkins first with acrylic craft paint this technique would work. If you want to do larger pumpkins, just make sure that you have a large enough container for water.
Do you have to spray a base color?
We found that the spray paint sticks better if you coat the pumpkins with spray paint that has a primer built in first. We tried a few on just the plain pumpkin body and some of the faux marble paint chipped off.
If you like this craft tutorial, make sure to leave a 5-star review and any comments at the end.
Painting Fake Pumpkins (Easy Idea)
Learn how to create a marble effect with spray paint for this easy Fall DIY decoration.
Print Tutorial
Prep:5 minutes mins
Active Time:15 minutes mins
Dry Time:1 hour hr
Total Time:1 hour hr 20 minutes mins
Equipment
Wooden Skewer
Old Plastic Bin or Bucket
Water
Supplies
- Faux Mini Pumpkins
- White Spray Paint With Primer We use a glossy finish to give a fun almost ceramic look.
- 2 Additional Colors of Spray Paint We used gold spray paint and black.
Instructions
Use large sweeping motions to cover pumpkins with white gloss spray paint.
Let spray paint fully dry.
Fill plastic container with water and gather other spray paints.
Add spray paint to water quickly. Add gold and then a little black.
Use a skewer to quickly swirl colors for 5 seconds. You do not need to do too much.
Dip the pumpkin in spray paint and water. Optional: You can swirl the pumpkin in the paint.
Pull pumpkin out.
Let fully dry.
Display your pumpkins for fun Fall DIY decorations.
Notes
- If you dip the whole pumpkin it is difficult to prop up to dry. For the ones that were completely dipped, use old styrofoam to stick the stems in.
- This technique works best with a base coat first. Make sure your first coat of paint uses spray paint with primer in it.
- You do not have to dip the whole pumpkin. Some of our favorites were ones that were only dipped halfway.
Author: Erin Nutter
Cost: under $5
Erin Nutter
Erin Nutter is the DIY enthusiast, writer and photographer behind TheDIYNuts.com. She loves sharing her passion for do-it-yourself projects along with her husband, Eric. As an artist, mother, and lover of all things DIY she hopes to inspire you to be creative to make a life and home you love.
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